Feds Deny Protection to Delta Fish

[The Straight Story]

Feds Deny Protection to Delta Fish

SACRAMENTO (AP) -- Federal authorities say a fish that inhabits California's delta does not warrant protection on the federal endangered species list.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service made the announcement Wednesday after a 12-month review of longfin smelt in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

The review was sought by environmental groups that say the fish population has plummeted to its lowest level in four decades.

Future protection remains a possibility for the broader longfin smelt population. The fish, which can grow up to 5 inches, is found in estuaries along the Pacific Coast from the San Francisco Bay area to Alaska.

http://www.news10.net/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=57539&catid=2

[rug]

1. They're not named Cheney or Bush.

[ShareTheWoods]

2. What kind of protection were they seeking? No mention in the link

Did they want to restrict fishing or some other type of restrictions?

[The Straight Story]

3. I am guessing there are automatic ones that go into effect when they are designated

endangered.

[omega minimo]

4. Delta smelt have been protected, the young get sucked into the pumps that send water South

The salmon runs have been collapsing, the smelt are endangered, the Delta is the estuary of the San Francisco Bay.

Arnolt wants to build a peripheral canal to send water South and make the Delta "healthier."